Original title: Rapid and sustained symptom reduction following psilocybin treatment for anxiety and depression in patients with life-threatening cancer: a randomized controlled trial
The trial involved 29 people with cancer-related anxiety and depression. Each received one dose of psilocybin or niacin, alongside psychotherapy, and researchers compared their symptoms before the groups switched treatments. Before that switch, the psilocybin group showed large, lasting drops in anxiety and depression. At follow-up, many still had clinically significant reductions in those symptoms.
Imagine tending a garden with a friend who is worn down by a difficult season. A short spell of careful help may ease the strain, but it is hard to know whether the change lasts once the visit is over. In this paper, the garden’s strain stands for anxiety and depression, and the brief help stands for one dose given alongside psychotherapy; the researchers checked whether relief remained months later.
Cancer-related anxiety and depression can affect patients’ mental and medical outcomes. In this trial, treatment was linked not only to lower distress but also to better quality of life, with many participants still reporting reduced anxiety or depression months later.
The abstract describes 29 participants and does not establish how well the results apply to other patients or settings. Both treatments were given with psychotherapy, so it does not show the effect of psilocybin without psychotherapy. It also does not provide details on adverse effects or longer-term outcomes beyond the stated 6.5-month follow-up.
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Rapid and sustained symptom reduction following psilocybin treatment for anxiety and depression in patients with life-threatening cancer: a randomized controlled trial — Stephen Ross, Anthony P. Bossis, Jeffrey R. Guss et al. — Journal of Psychopharmacology — doi:10.1177/0269881116675512
Abstract licence: CC BY
Explanation generated by Synthesis from the abstract — it is not the original paper.